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May 26, 2015
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Featured Stories
Arts, Entertainment & Events
Announcements
Deals & Promos
Construction & Utility Work Updates
BID Ambassador Services & Links
City Services
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This Week's Featured Event
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Actors' Shakespeare Project Performing 'Henry VI, Part 2' Through June 7th at Modern Theatre
The Actors' Shakespeare Project is performing "Henry VI, Part 2" at Suffolk University's Modern Theatre through June 7th.
The Henry VI plays were popular back in the day, "...because they were packed with conspiratorial machinations unfolding right in front of you in an irresistible feast of intrigue."
Click here for tickets and more information. |
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Arts, Entertainment & Events
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Free Berklee College of Music Performance Series at 100 Summer St. Red Velvet - May 28th
The Berklee College of Music Summer Concert Series continues this week with Red Velvet on May 28th from noon to 2 pm. This performance is free and open to the public.
Red Velvet is an acoustic duo drawing from proud Southern roots, Northeastern tenacity, and fiery hair all around. Heavily influenced by greats such as Stevie Wonder, Tedeschi Trucks Band, the Civil Wars, and Parliament, Red Velvet brings to life a sound reminiscent of an era when music was synonymous with soul.
Jordan Lipsey and Neal Rosenthal met on their first day at Berklee College of Music in the fall of 2011 and quickly became friends due to the subconscious, natural draw of one redhead to another. By the summer of 2012, they had begun to play as a duo in Lipsey's native Texas.
This is the second year of the free Berklee concert series at 100 Summer St. |
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125 Summer Street Soloists Music Series with Boris Popovich on May 27th & 29th
The BID launched a new music series - The 125 Summer Street Soloists Series. Every Wednesday and Friday from noon to 2 pm through September there will be a live performer at 125 Summer St. All performance are free and open to the public.
On Wednesday, May 27th and Friday, May 29th flutist Boris Popovich will perform. There is public seating at the location, so take your lunch outside and enjoy the music! |
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Erin Og Performing at
Boston Calling Block Party in Dewey Square Park - May 28th
This week's Boston Calling Block Party is in Dewey Square (Congress and Summer streets) on Thursday, May 28th with Erin Og performing live. Thursday's block party is from 5 to 8:30 pm.
Thursday night block parties will be in Dewey Square through the end of September.
All block parties are free and you must be 21 to attend. Beer and wine is available for purchase.
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IIIC Celebrates Haitian Heritage Month with Discussion and Short Film
The Irish International Immigrant Center (100 Franklin St. Lower Level) is hosting an informal discussion on the Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program, the status of Haitian and American diplomacy and showing a short film on Thursday, May 28th. This is in recognition of Haitian Heritage Month.
Panelists include Lindsay Day, project manager of Confronting Guantanamo Project, Northeastern University, and Brian Concannon, Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti. There will also be discussion of the Guantanamo crisis between 1991 and 1994. The short film "The Haitian Experience at Guantanamo" will be shown.
RSVP to Joanne Meleance at 617-542-7654 x.13 or email [email protected]. This event is free and is from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. |
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The Merchant is Hosting 'A Night of Beer' with 20 Beers on May 29th
The Merchant (60 Franklin St.) is hosting "A Night of Beer" as an after party for the American Craft Beer Fest Session 1 on Friday, May 29th at 10 pm.
The Merchant will be tapping 10 core offerings and 10 rare offerings from 10 American craft breweries. Click here for more information and a list of beers being tapped and offered. |
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Sensory-Friendly Screening of 'Tomorrowland' at AMC Loews Boston Common on May 30th
The AMC Loews Boston Common 19 is showing a sensory-friendly show once a month on Saturdays. The next screening is of "Tomorrowland" on Saturday, May 30th at 10 am.
The auditorium lights will remain up for the whole show and the volume will be kept at a lower level so people with special needs can watch and enjoy the movie, too. Click here for movie and ticket information. |
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'Who Are We?' is Theme of StageSource Conference at Boston Opera House on June 7th
The StageSource Theater Conference biennially convenes actors, directors, designers, playwrights, production and administrative personnel and theater enthusiasts to discuss issues facing Boston area theater. The next conference is being held on Sunday, June 7th beginning at 9 am at the Boston Opera House (539 Washington St.).
Conference participants will discuss issues facing Boston area theater, explore opportunities and confront challenges, as well as celebrate theater. There will be panel discussions on new and innovative ways to build audiences, engage board members, how to collaborate with other organizations and more.
Registration is $30 per person, plus $10 for lunch. Click here for full details on the conference and online registration. |
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The Redcoats are in Downtown Boston! Watch the Changing of the Guard in the Crossing, at the State House and More
The Downtown Boston BID and the Freedom Trail Foundation are bringing history to life in Boston! See the Redcoats changing the guard, as well colonists and British soldiers interacting as if it were 1775. These exciting and entertaining activities will pop-up in unexpected places throughout the BID area on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from noon to 2 pm.
Listen as the military drummer accompanies soldiers to their posts and the soldiers complete inspections while marching to their next post. Meet and engage with 18th-century figures and talk with them about life in Boston's early years. The Redcoats will be in downtown streets from May to October. |
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BID Internships Available
The Downtown Boston BID is seeking qualified, enthusiastic interns to assist with the following projects: - Office administration and customer service
- Policy research and analysis
- Data collection, input and management
Please send a cover letter and resume to [email protected]. |
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Downtown Boston BID Weekly News Update
For questions and comments, please contact David Ertischek, newsletter editor, at: [email protected] |
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First International Ogawa Coffee
Opens on Milk Street
Even before the ribbon was cut, customers lined Milk Street for their first cup of Ogawa Coffee on Friday. This is Ogawa Coffee's first international store, and they chose our city because Kyoto, where the company is headquartered, is a sister city of Boston.
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| | Left to right: Taeko Emura General Manager; John Barros, Chief of Economic Development, City of Boston; Yoshinori Uda, President & CEO of Ogawa Coffee USA; Hideaki Ogawa, President of Ogawa Coffee Ltd.; Takako Oji, Executive Director; Haruna Murayama, General Barista Trainer; and Yuji Ogawa son of Hideaki Ogawa. |
"[At] our first Ogawa Coffee in Boston customers were so enthusiastic about trying the coffee and from what we heard this morning, the line was worth the wait," said Takako Oji, executive director of Ogawa Coffee. "The response to everything from the taste of the coffee to the design of the shop was very positive! We hope that our customers continue to enjoy the ambiance of our urban oasis and continue to provide feedback as we learn more about the American coffee consumers."
The Boston shop showcases a customized layout and design by Oji, who is not only the executive director, but also a local architect and engineer. The shop serves as a teaching lab with retractable stadium seating in front of the bar so customers can watch the baristas in action. 
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| | Ogawa Coffee is tasty and features foam designs in cups of coffee - it'll make you want to take photos of your food and drink. |
Ogawa Coffee is open 7 am to 7 pm Monday through Friday, and 10 am to 7 pm on Saturday and Sunday.
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CCLC School Students Plant and Paint with BID Ambassadors
The students of the Children's Creative Learning Center (CCLC) on School Street got their hands dirty planting flowers outside of the school on Thursday.
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| | BID Operations Manager Steve Brookes helps a student dig a hole for a plant. |
"This was a great experience for all our children. They loved planting the flowers and decorating the flower boxes," said Liz Jenny, director of CCLC. "Parents have been coming in also commenting about how good the flower boxes now look. I have also been getting 'thumbs up' from people just passing by!"
BID Ambassadors Steve and John, along with CCLC staff, helped the children paint their hand prints on the planters.
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| | BID Ambassador John helps a youngster place a plant into soil. |
Children 3- to 5-years-old participated by digging up soil with a trowel, selecting flowers of their choosing (red, pink or white) and then planting their choice.
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| | CCLC students chose their preferred paint color to put their hand prints on the planters outside their school. |
After the two concrete planters were full with flowers the students then put their hands in paint and placed their hand prints on the planters.
During the city's annual Boston Shines event volunteers had repainted the planters and cleaned them out in preparation for the students' work. |
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St. Francis House Proposes 46 Affordable Housing Units on Boylston Street
St. Francis House (39 Boylston St.) and the Planning Office of Urban Affairs (POUA) have proposed to redevelop 48 Boylston St. into 46 units of affordable housing. Twenty-six of the units would be set aside for homeless individuals.
This is the first of a three-phase plan proposed for the site. Mayor Martin Walsh announced the proposal as part of $39 million of funding for affordable housing throughout Boston. The citywide proposal would create or preserve 1,194 affordable units using $27 million in federal and local resources through the Department of Neighborhood Development and $11.7 million in linkage funds through Boston's Neighborhood Housing Trust. Click here for more information about Walsh's announcement and the rest of the proposed developments throughout the city. |
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Olivia Brown, GM of The Ritz-Carlton and BID Board Member to Head Up Bellagio in Vegas
The BID would like to congratulate Olivia Brown on being named the General Manager of the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Brown began working at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences in April of 2014 and quickly joined the BID board.
We look forward to hearing about Brown's continued success in the future. Good luck in Las Vegas! |
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Boston's Earliest High-Fashion Gown Now on View at the Old State House
'It's all about the dress' is a wedding phrase often spoken these days. Well ahead of her time was Boston fashionista Elizabeth Bull, who designed her own colorful, hand-embroidered silk wedding gown several years before she even had a groom in mind. The one-of-a-kind Elizabeth Bull gown, a stunning example of Boston's earliest haute couture, is on temporary display through the end of this year at Boston's Old State House (206 Washington St.).
Bull started designing, sewing, and embroidering her China silk gown when she was only 14 while still in school. By 1734, she had already been at work on her gown for several years when she met Roger Price, the rector of Trinity Church in Boston, who she would marry. |
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Earn Macy's Money on Purchases Through May 31st
Earn Macy's Money on your purchases through May 31st, and then redeem your Macy's Money from June 3rd to 7th either in-store or online.
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Construction & Utility Work Updates
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Millennium Tower Continues to Reach for the Sky and More
Downtown Boston is continually transforming, with new buildings rising, as well as transportation projects taking place underground and at street level. Looking for the latest updates on developments, construction, sidewalk closings, and more? Click here.  |
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BID Ambassador Services & Links
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BID Ambassadors Provide Walking Escorts 24 Hours a Day in Downtown
The Downtown Boston BID Ambassadors provide hospitality services seven days a week, nearly 24 hours a day, creating a welcoming environment for everyone. BID Ambassadors provide walking escorts all day or night - they'll even tote an umbrella if it's snowing!
Please call 617-261-0066 to arrange an escort or for other BID Ambassador services. Please call 20 to 30 minutes prior to desired escort. You can also email [email protected], which is encouraged.
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Additional BID Ambassador Services
- Friendly, welcoming downtown presence: helping visitors with directions, notifying fire and police personnel of incident, etc.
- Making sure handicapped ramps are not obstructed and storm drain openings are not clogged.
- Cleaning and powerwashing in Downtown Boston during warm weather.
- Landscaping, watering flowers during warm weather.
- Remove litter and graffiti
- Contact [email protected] for more.
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